Corinth man charged with Chop Shop

A Corinth man is incarcerated at the Heard County jail without bond on a probation hold after being arrested Wednesday at his home on a Chop Shop charge.

According to Lieutenant Melinda Davis with the Heard County Sheriff’s Department, 42-year-old Thomas Walton Hale of 56 South River Circle was arrested after a tip from Troup County investigators.

Hale allegedly was in the process of breaking down an older model Ford Explorer inside of a fence in his back yard. The vehicle had not been reported stolen, and according to Davis the female owner claimed that Hale was supposed to be repairing the vehicle.

Georgia State Code 16-8-83 prohibits owning, operating, or conducting a chop shop and the charge is a felony.